Americans are bracing for a future with fewer jobs, and pessimism keeps deepening. A new survey places the US among the most worried countries about AI’s effect on work, a mood that lands squarely in radio, where debate rages on how far synthetic voices should go.
Pew Research Center found that 71% of Americans expect AI to lead to fewer jobs in the country over the next 20 years, while 5% expect more jobs and 10% expect no difference. Only Australia and South Korea, at 76% each, were higher among the 37 countries surveyed, where the median was 46%. In 34 of the 37 countries, more people expected fewer jobs than more.
The US figure is up 7 points from 64% in August 2024, and the US is the only country where Pew has asked the question before.
Pew’s US figures come from a June 22-28 survey of 3,488 adults, with a margin of error of 1.8 points, and a February 17-23 survey of 5,119 adults, with a margin of error of 1.6 points. The international findings draw on 42,151 adults surveyed across 36 other countries from February 8 to May 13.
Fifty-two percent of Americans said the increased use of AI in daily life makes them more concerned than excited, while 37% said equally concerned and excited and 9% said more excited than concerned. Concern was relatively stable over the past year, but it is up significantly from 37% in 2021.
Young adults drove much of that rise. Among Americans 18 to 34, 55% are now more concerned than excited, up from 40% in 2024 and 8 points since 2025, compared with 50% of those 35 to 49 and 53% of those 50 and older. Five years ago, older adults were somewhat more concerned. Americans 18 to 34 are also more likely than those 50 and older to expect fewer jobs, 74% to 67%, a gap Pew said is driven by Americans 65 and older.
On inequality, 46% of Americans said AI will increase the gap between the rich and the poor, 21% said it will not make much difference, 5% said it will decrease the gap, and 27% were not sure. The view is more common among adults under 35 than among those 50 and older, 56% to 38%, and among liberals than conservatives, 66% to 35%.
Awareness is rising alongside concern. Forty-eight percent of Americans said in February they have heard or read a lot about AI, nearly double the 26% who said so in December 2022, and the share is 59% among adults 18 to 34 versus 40% among those 50 and older.
